Rishi Kapoor
Rishi Kapoor

Rishi Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor assaulted people from the media yesterday during Ganpati visarjan. The veteran actors were caught hitting and pushing reporters and cameramen in a clip which has gone viral. Rishi Kapoor gave his reasons in a statement and in response to that, a journalist Sonup Sahadevan has written an open letter to the actor. Here are a few excerpts –

Dear Rishi Kapoor,
Let me start by introducing myself with a little help from your Twitter profile. I am neither the son of a famous father nor the father of a famous son. So I am not a nationally known hyphen yet or in your words perhaps just a ‘small time journalist’. But just like you I don’t like anti-nationals and abusers.” And I am sure you will agree that anger, abuse and subsequent violence are no answers as you rightly pointed out on your Twitter timeline on September 12 –

“Sad. For want of sharing water-such anger,such vandalism and such violence? Ultimately you will only suffer Karnataka! Please come to terms. I may not know the Cauvery waters problem (TN/KA). But violence is no answer. Law and Order must prevail. Bengaluru is an international IT hub!”

Using the same analogy, if I were to ask you: “Such anger and such violence just for covering your Ganpati visarjan?” Please come to terms. You may not like the media and ‘small-time journalists’ but violence is no answer.

You ask, “When we are respecting God, these small-time journalists poke the damn camera on your face.”
Sir, there are no small-time journalists. There are only hardworking and non-hardworking ones. We in the Press don’t get launched in the media industry like star sons of Bollywood. We don’t have a Bhansali, Salman Khan or Karan Johar waiting in wings to give us a lead role in the field of journalism after graduation. We work our way up the old-fashioned way by giving our sweat and blood.

You say, “Because Ranbir was also there everybody got so excited. I don’t blame them, but they misbehaved with me. If I have indeed slapped them why don’t you show the clip of me slapping?”

It’s human to err sir. We may have erred on earlier occasions and acknowledged it but not this time. You say we come because we know you are important. Yes, you are right. We believe you are important and it is because of that very belief we continue to back your son Ranbir Kapoor despite his flops. For we believe form is temporary but class is permanent. We also believe some day you will stop being the raging bull and delight us off the screen with your quotes the way you do on Twitter.

Read the entire letter here.